Heat conduction nanocalorimeter for pl-scale single cell measurements

An ultrasensitive nanocalorimeter for use with pl-scale biological samples using silicon microfabrication technology has been developed in which a 720 pl reaction vessel, a calibration heater, and a thermoelectric transducer of 125 muK sensitivity were integrated into a single multilayer thin-film configuration. The resolution of the system ranged from 10 to 25 nW depending on the heat capacity, conductance and power density of the samples studied. The device has been used in heat conduction measurements of the energy released from the enzyme catalyzed hydrolysis of hydrogen peroxide using purified catalase, and for the determination of the catalase activity within a single mouse hepatocyte. The nanocalorimeter has the potential for integration in a high-density array format, where the change in temperature from ultralow volume cellular assays could be used as a generic analytical tool for high throughput screening of bioactive compounds. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics.